Summary Report

Of

‘CHINTAN SHIBIR’

 

Text Box: From the experience of last 6 years, we can say that out of 1500 people; 300 people need the actual reformative initiatives. This particular group of habitual offenders causes 80% of damage to the society in different aspect. Our present component of criminal justice system specially police system look at detention & harsh punishment as a method to reform them. Though there are scientific & professional methods of reformation in criminological studies, police machinery still trust & use punitive methods. The role of police machinery is the investigation of criminal activities and the maintenance of law & order. The whole system only concentrates on the detention and the legal proceedings of the habitual offenders. As a society we engage our manpower, time, machinery and resources on the detention and legal proceedings. Detention of a criminal is not a permanent phenomenon; it is for a short period of the time.

The detention period is supposed to be the period where the offender should retrospect on his deeds & engage himself in reformative activities. But from the state we do not have the Professional Machinery or the system to undertake the reformative & rehabilitative activities for this neglected group for their on betterment in particular and society in general. Therefore the offenders commit offences again and again which damage whole society. People assume that the detention, punishment, reformation, and rehabilitation are the duties of police system and the society do not have any role to play in the process. Police presume that their role is only investigation, production in the court and maintenance of law and order and not beyond that. The reformative initiative lays much beyond this routine pattern of working of police system. On the other hand they do not even accept the reformative initiative taken by any other agency as they feel it is their responsibility and no one should interfere in this process. This rigid position taken by both the police system & the society create the huge gap & result in distrust on each other. Therefore the social insensitivity has risen up in the society. The offences happen in the society but we do not have the witnesses for them even though people know the offender. Because of this insensitivity the real culprit goes scot-free & the innocent gets the punishment. The society has lost the trust on the criminal justice system and therefore we do not have the responsible citizens who can assist the police personnel in reformative processes. Many of times society held entire police system responsible for the wrong doings which is also the tyranny on the police system. No one looked at it as a problem which needs to be corrected with the proper & professional treatment.

 

While taking this need into consideration we arranged one day CHINTAN SHIBIR on 4th of July for all the ‘released’ so called ‘hard core criminals’. It was arranged to coin the word reformation for the people who are prosecuted for criminal behaviour & to prevent the new comer from landing in the criminal behaviour for the best interest of the society. The objective behind this was the retrospection of past deeds, and analyzes the gain and lost or the impact of the criminal activities on their life. In this Shibir we invited the big guns or the infamous people from criminal world.

It has proven from criminological studies that, in most of the cases people land in criminal behaviour by the force of circumstances. Criminal activities of the person deprived him from all his Emotional, Psychological and Social needs. The CHITAN SHIBIR was the platform given to them to express their feeling, their views, hardships in front of the society & the people aspiring carrier in the criminal field. The shared experiences of “Hard Core Criminals” will prevent the newcomer from landing in criminal field. The reformation & the Prevention of involvement in crime at its root was the main issues discussed in this CHINTAN SHIBIR.

 

Some of the opinions of the participants:

 

“I left the criminal activities before 2 yrs. But still that negative impact of my activities has darkened my present life. I wanted to lead the normal life with my family. But it is very tough for me.”

 

 “Due to circumstances people land in criminal world, but it is very tough to come out of it”.  I left crime but still rest of the society has not accepted me. Even police personnel do not trust me that I have left all my illegal activities & I want to lead a normal life.  

 

“Once upon a time I was a history shitter. I left illegal things 4 years back. But some of the notorious persons use my name & commit crimes. The police system held me responsible for this. But that is not the reality. I wanted to reform myself & I reformed. But society & other people including police refuse to accept people like me.  Though people want to reform themselves from the criminal world but it is the society who refuses their reform. Therefore the crime rate is increasing day by day; punishment will not solve our problem. This kind of initiative should be taken again & again”.

 

“When I land in crime I was 12 years old. There were many complaints against me. I spend 3 years inside the jail. There I came into contact with VARHAD. They are working for reformation. Form last 2 years I am in contact with them. Slowly & gradually I am also thinking to lead a normal life. But as like others, police personnel have not accepted me. Last year, there was a theft in the opposite house in my colony. That night I had alcohol with my friend. I was under influence of alcohol. I came home & came to know about the theft. Police came to my house; they took me to police station under suspicion. My family members accompanied me. And after that with the help of police that complainant harassed my old mother & sister. For six month they were running from one place to another. That time I felt that I should murdered either that complainant or the police personnel. But VARHAD guided me & therefore I had not committed any illegal behavoiur”.

 

The police personnel were also present in large number. They also shared their views. They appreciated the initiative and said that in good sprit & with good objective they are also open for reformative initiatives.